In a life that sometimes feels like a never-ending parade of amazing experiences and beautiful moments, I’m the first to admit I’m grateful — and the first to admit I can get a little jaded. To shake me out of those occasional weary times, I need one of what I (and, granted, Oprah) call our “aha moments.” Moments that are so undeniably, core-rockingly special that they kind of jolt me awake out of any kind of sleepwalking I might have been doing through life.

Yi Peng was one of those moments.

I’d long been interested in attending the Lanna (northern Thai) festival known as Yi Peng. Often confused with a corresponding festival that takes places around Thailand, Loy Krathong — including by yours truly — Yi Peng involves thousands of sky lanterns being launched into the air simultaneously as part of a religious ceremony. Images of the release grace postcard stands all over Thailand, and I knew someday I’d have to finally make it a priority to attend. Turns out, this was my year.

Because the date of Yi Peng is aligned with the lunar calendar, it changes every year and is kept secret until very close to the date. Recently, the festival has grown to be so popular that in addition to the free local event there is also now an expensive, ticketed and tourist-driven lantern release that is scheduled and often sold out far in advance. In 2014, this event fell on November 6th and cost over $100USD — but we weren’t interested in attending that one. Lovely and well organized as I’m sure it was, as veteran Thailand travelers we felt we could handle the local event, despite the challenges.

The biggest challenge being, of course, to figure out what darn day it was! Thankfully I have some friends in Chiang Mai, and between chatting with them and combing through Chiang Mai expat groups on Facebook I managed to find out in early October that the 2014 free local event was going to be held October 25th — at least I hoped. There wasn’t any official announcement and there was some debate, so we just crossed our fingers and basically based our entire trip up north on this somewhat dubious date.

I was absolutely overjoyed when I realized that one of my favorite humans on the planet, , was also going to be in town and was up for joining us. These three musketeers were ready for anything.

Upon arrival in Chiang Mai, we were relieved to find confirmation that we did indeed have the festival date correct. However, there was still work to do — we had to figure out how to get to the grounds of Mae Jo University, about 12 miles outside Chiang Mai center. We saw travel agencies offering packages to that included mini bus transfer for anywhere from 500-1000 baht ($15-30) but they left very early in the day and we were wary of sharing our special experience with a bunch of weirdos (aren’t we optimists!)

We also did not want to drive our own motorbikes, though it would have been the cheapest option, as we are all uncomfortable driving in the dark in traffic. Finally, the morning of the festival, we found a tuk tuk driver willing to take us there, wait, and return us to Chiang Mai for 900 baht — a mere $9US each for round trip transport.

So we packed up our cameras, sarongs (we knew we’d need something to camp out on for the day), and a whole bundle of high expectations and made our way out to Mae Jo.

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We arrived around 3:30 and even at that early hour we had a bit of a scramble to find a spot around one of the float launches. With the ceremony not starting until far after sunset, after we staked out our spot, we had quite a few hours to kill. Luckily we had cameras, copious snacks, and each other for entertainment. And while one of us always stayed to guard our float launch, we took turns wandering back out to the festival grounds for a stroll. While it was indeed a very long time in the very hot sun, it was worth it for our prime location, in my opinion.

We had seen an information sheet in our hotel that had a few guidelines about how to be respectful at the ceremony, including dressing conservatively, covering shoulders, and wearing white. This launched a massive scramble around town that resulted in, if not exactly white, a very neutral colored ensemble. We were pretty pleased with ourselves for our Eat Pray Love-esque adherence to the dress code, but laughed when we arrived to find hundreds of Thais dressed in brightly colored minidresses. Ah well, who doesn’t need a new pair of tan hued hippie pants?

Though we’d bought our own balloons back in town, guards stopped us at the entrance and told us we could not bring them into the lawn. Whoops. Turns out you can only release the official, supposedly eco-friendly lanterns sold inside for 100 baht (about $3). We were interested to see that tons of people just hang out outside the official area so they can drink, make merry and release whatever darn lanterns they want — but we were happy to go the official route this time around.

No lie: much to Heather and Torre’s amusement, I may have fallen asleep and took a nap sitting cross legged on our sarong sometime around sunset. Did I mention there was some really hypnotizing music on and we’d spent all day in the heat?

Thankfully, there was a flurry of activity to knock me back awake.

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Things started kicking off right before sunset, as Buddhist chanting and prayers began and a nasally voice came over the loudspeaker to explain the processions in both English and Thai.

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You’ll notice that Heather took almost every single photo in this post, and I am so grateful to her for that. She’d been on a self declared “camera hiatus” up until then (as a professional photographer, she certainly deserves one every once in a while!) and so when I saw how fired up she was about firing shots off here, I was able to really relax and just submit to the sensory overload without worrying about documentation.

Though I did, admittedly, get a little hypnotized by a light-painting experiment with some of the loner lanterns being set off from outside the gate. If you ever want to try something similar, just slow your shutter speed way down and play away! It took me about a million outtakes to get these results.

And then finally, finally, it was our turn. There were to be three strictly timed releases, and we listened carefully to the instructions coming over the loudspeaker. The lanterns are made with a thin rice paper stretched over a bamboo frame, from which a fuel cell is attached. The poles gridded around the lawn each contained a candle for lighting the fuel cells. Having set off lanterns before, we already knew the drill — the secret is to get the middle lit, and then hold the lantern down to the ground to trap hot air and create enough tension and lift for the lantern to float up up and away.

We were instructed to fill our balloons with feelings of love and good hope for our loved ones, and my heart swelled like our lantern as I thought about my mom, my dad, my sisters and all my other people around the world.

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Honestly, I don’t know if there is a writer alive who could bring justice to that moment with words. While writing this post I went back and watched a bunch of crappy cell phone videos I took — nothing worth sharing here — but they brought me back, and so they brought me to tears.

In the midst of the overwhelming euphoria and surreality, there were moments that grounded us right back in Thailand — lanterns getting caught in nearby trees and incinerating the defenseless branches, waylaid lanterns landing on soon afire heads of hair, a man proposing in the midst of the madness.

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I couldn’t believe we got to do it two more times! The magic didn’t wear off in the slightest.

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Later, pulsing with adrenaline and trying to form words to describe our experience, we concluded that the only thing we could compare it to was coming down from drugs (and by that, mom, I mean what my friends have told me coming down from drugs feels like, obviously). We laughed, we cried, we had the shakes — nothing can prepare you for the natural high of witnessing Yi Peng in person. Thousands of lanterns released into the night sky like giant pulsing jellyfish, each one filled with good energy for friends and family around the world.

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And the night ended with a bang — literally. Passionate fireworks filled the now-black sky, a stark contrast to the lazy balloons still making their way upward.

We’d been warned endlessly about the journey back into town. In the end, it took up about two hours to get from our spot on the lawn back to our hotel — much of that was simply making our way back through the festival grounds, which was also prime snack refueling time. And actually, I didn’t mind the time in transit — it gave me time to reflect and to absorb, and to soak up a few more hours with these two special ladies.

This was truly one of the most amazing days of my life and I can’t think of two women I’d rather have shared it with. Thank you, Torre and Heather. I know I’ve shared this quote before, but I can’t help but share it one more time again.

It’s hard to stay mad, when there’s so much beauty in the world. Sometimes I feel like I’m seeing it all at once, and it’s too much, my heart fills up like a balloon that’s about to burst… And then I remember to relax, and stop trying to hold on to it, and then it flows through me like rain and I can’t feel anything but gratitude for every single moment of my stupid little life.

Yi Pengaparazzi!

I will do everything in my power to make it to Yi Peng again in 2015, and probably, like, I don’t know, every other year for the rest of my life as long as I live. Will you join me?

What festivals around the world have left you feeling euphoric?

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UPDATE: I have received countless emails asking for the specific dates of future Yi Peng festivals, or advice on how to determine those dates. As stated in the beginning of this post, there is no easy nor definite way to determine the date ahead of time. My best advice is to keep an eye on Chiang Mai expat groups on Facebook, and to keep your travel plans flexible. With close monitoring I was able to suss the date about a month ahead of time, though there was a lot of debate and misinformation out there. There is no official announcement! Hence, there is no way to know with absolute certainty if you’ve arrived on the right date until you’re standing in a field with thousands of other lantern-holders.

If you can’t live with that kind of uncertainty, your best bet is to book around the paid, ticketed tourist event. Best of luck!

Wow. Just wow! These images are so stunning. Beautifully captured, Meihoukai! (I know those nighttime exposures aren’t easy!) I put Yi Peng on my list a while back and when I saw your Photo of the Week of the festival a few months ago, it just solidified my desire to attend. I’m impatient and I’m not a huge fan of sitting around in the heat without a pool or ocean steps away, but mark my words I will make myself see this!

Yi Peng is top of my bucket list and this post will make it a lot easier to organise when I finally get my bum to Thailand! Also I love Torre, I’ve read her book so many times 🙂Francesca recently posted..

Wow, what an incredible experience! The photos capture the festival so perfectly. A couple of years ago in India I went to Uttarayan Kite Festival which ended in a similar display of thousands of lanterns in the air. There is something so, so magical and somehow humbling about watching them all slowly drift away. Naturally, being India, a plane took off right through the lanterns drifting above – I was so worried something bad was going to happen!Christie recently posted..

I really, really want to go next year (especially after seeing your awesome pictures) and am hoping that it’s around the same time next year since I’ll be in Thailand for TBEX! See you there 😉Amanda recently posted..

what an amazing experience!! I was wondering if it would be worth the hassle and clearly it is. Loved all of Heathers photos!! Especially those night shots. The one of you guys on the lawn looks like the guy in the background is snapping a photo of you too – haha!Katie recently posted..

This looks like such a wonderful experience! I will actually be taking the leap and doing a bit of solo travel in Thailand this fall so hopefully I can figure out the date and attend myself. Also a little shoutout of thanks to you and your amazing, helpful, inspiring blog! You and your blog are actually a large part of what has made me commit to a trip and finally make it happen. So a very heartfelt thanks to you!! I am still months away but I am already so happy with my decision and can’t wait for the adventures ahead!

Funny story about the year I went…the monks were doin’ their thing, chanting up on their big white podium deal, when one of those illegal lanterns, shaped like–and I shit you not–an ANGRY BIRD fell down out of the sky and hit one of the poor monks mid-chant. I laughed WAY harder than was appropriate for pretty much the rest of the night.

This post brought tears to my eyes. Years ago I attended this with my best friend, new travel and local friends. At the time I did not realize how blessed we were to be invited and taken to the festival by a dear Thai friend.

You are absolutely right in saying their are no words to describe it.

I remember my best friend and I having some tension between us for some time. During Yi Peng when the lanterns were first released she looked at me with tears welling in her eyes. All our wounds were healed. It brought us, old friends back together and new friends closer.

Wow what beautiful photos! I hope the laterna they use really are eco-friendly. When I was in Chiang Mai on New Years eve many people were releasing lanterns, and although it was beautiful watching them go up, it was pretty sad watching them all fall back down around the city.Miquel recently posted..

That looks like such an incredible experience Meihoukai! Thank you for sharing it. I was just talking to a friend about exploring South East Asia later this year, so maybe we’ll try to fit it around Yi Peng…Chalsie recently posted..

I have heard to this festival before, but never in such great detail! Thank you so much for sharing your experience and for inspiring so many of us to try and venture out to Yi Peng this year. I did a bit of googling and found that the festival will be held around end of November this year. Does this sound right? It’s a month after TBEX… I don’t think I’ll be able to make it, but I would sooooo LOVE to!Oksana | Drink Tea and Travel recently posted..

Hey Oksana, if you are finding a date this early it is most certainly for the paid tourist event — something different than what is shown here. The date for what we went to will probably not be released until October 🙂

Meihoukai, these photos of yours and Heather’s are truly inspiring! Have you considered writing a post on how to photograph Yi Peng? It seems like a challenging environment and one of those times where it’s really important to get it right the first (or third) time! Or maybe you could convince Heather to guest post 🙂Sonja @ Breadcrumbs Guide recently posted..

I actually just wrote a guest post on photography tips for the first time on the Contiki blog! Not nighttime specific, but if you are interested check out my Meihoukai in Wanderland Facebook page for the link 🙂

On a teeny local scale this reminds me that for many years date of The Grand Illumination on Martha’s Vineyard was a well kept secret. Twenty years ago when we were lucky enough to stumble into it, I felt like I floating in a magic, surreal place.

Well, just like the scene in the movie Tangled, your pictures gave me chills and made me teary-eyed. Now I’m filled with a home-sickness type of longing for another place I’ve never been! Yi Peng is definitely on my bucket list now.

Incredible post, Meihoukai! This is something I have been dying to do – it’s definitely moved up the list thanks to your enthusiastic and vivd re-telling. Amazing photography – as an avid photographer I am jumping at the chance to visit during this festival. Adding it to my plans for 2015 for sure!Paul D recently posted..

Why yes, I most certainly do plan on joining in 2015. What a dream! Ha – you falling asleep reminds me of my best friend and myself napping on the ground during Made in America festival in between performances, exhausted from LA’s unforgiving summer sun.
I think I would be so overcome with emotions in Yi Peng that I could barely put them into adequate words either, but seeing and reading this is beyond moving. The quote at the end was perfect and nearly made me tear up. Everything about this is truly spellbinding.

One international festival I experienced was St. Anthony’s Feast in Lisbon (mid-june). I was so entranced by the city’s burst of energy and pride, especially since I had no idea what to expect beforehand. It was so jovial and definitely euphoric to be a part of!

This is beautiful, and Heather captured some fantastic shots! Despite the madness (having never seen it for myself, I can only imagine), I can’t picture a more beautiful setting for a proposal. That shot of you with the lanterns is gorgeous, and I think perfectly captures the joy you felt. Thank you for this wonderful post!Beth recently posted..

Could you look anymore deliriously happy in these photos? I absolutely love the sentiment behind this festival. Makes me teary just reading about it. Not sure when you’re going to Burma (I think you said you’re going…or was it cancelled?) but for a wackier sort of fire balloon festival, I highly recommend Taunggyi in November. Just errr…be careful.becky hutner recently posted..

Totally off to Google that now! Yeah, Burma keeps just somehow not happening, ha. I have the best intentions! My friend Anna and I have made a serious pact to go when I get back in the fall — hopefully this time we keep it!

Wow, I had no idea that Yi Peng was such a to-do! Silly me for thinking you just show up and enjoy the show. I did notice, at the time, that there was a lot of conflicting information on when the festival was, but I didn’t know it was so difficult to find out the real date. That’s definitely good to know! If I’m still in Asia later this year, I am making Yi Peng a priority. Judging from your description, it sounds like a surreal and amazing experience. All of these photos are just outstanding 🙂Justine recently posted..

I cried while reading this, and that is not an exaggeration. Since I stopped believing in God this festival has had a hold on me in a way I can’t describe. It symbolizes hope and peace and gratitude and optimism in a way that I don’t know that I can find otherwise. I’m left hoping that knowing you will be enough to help me get there so I can experience it myself. Thank you for posting the photos because there is something very comforting about seeing that it isn’t just a dream, that this is real and I can get there someday. We might have to go to the tourist one since the authentic one is unpredictable, but I can dream that it will be just as good. Right?

I will do anything I can to help you get there, girl! As you know from our discussions I do not believe in God, either, but I do believe in energy and the power of positive thought and hope and gratitude and all those woo woo things — and this night is really a mecca for all of them. Though the world spiritual has a really religious connotation, that really is how the experience feels.

These images are so beautiful. I can only imagine the feeling of happiness and the power of good with everyone pulsating happy thoughts and good wishes at the same moment.I have goosebumps looking at the image of the saffron clad monks sitting on the little hill and indeed there are no words for the lanterns in the sky. I have never heard of this festival and I don’t know if I’ll ever make it there so thank you for sharing the beauty!Carmel recently posted..

Hey Karen! Honestly I don’t know much about the historical and religious differences, but in practical terms Loy Krathong is more about letting off floating lanterns into a body of water and Yi Peng is more about letting floating lanterns into the sky — though there is a bit of each at both 🙂

I’ve not had the good fortune to witness Yi Peng for myself (yet), but I still felt very lucky getting to see it through your (and Heather’s!) eyes. I loved when you compared the floating lanterns to gently pulsating jelly fish… it seems such an apt comparison. Totally hypnotic and completely transcendent!Steph (@ 20 Years Hence) recently posted..

Hi Meihoukai! Just stumbled across your blog while searching for information about Yi Peng. Thank you for all of the information and tips! 🙂 My goal is to be in Chiang Mai for the festival this year, but I am finding it is hard to plan in advance. I have a flight booked and hopefully it happens sometime between 11/20-11/30, so I don’t miss it! 🙂

According to the announcement from the
Chiangmai province, the lanterns can be launched only in Loy Krathong day ( Yeepeng festival ) on 25 NOV. (100-300 Dollars)
The event which is the special day of Buddhist ceremony that used to have the activity of launching lanterns will be held on 21 NOV.

Thus, the event on 21 NOV. WILL NOT HAVE the launching lantern activity.

Hey Vanessa, can you share where you heard/found this information? There is so much misinformation and confusion around about Yi Peng, I don’t want to spread any further without official confirmation and links. (Plus, this kinda sounds like a rumor and highly unlikely.)

I think these are some of my favorite photos I’ve ever seen of Yi Peng!!
I went to Loy Krathong while I lived in Bangkok and always dreamed of eventually coming back for Yi Peng.. maybe next year!
Thanks for all the great advice too (I had never realized the more authentic event is kept kinda secret!)Steph recently posted..

Meihoukai! Your blog post and pictures were both amazing and inspiring! I have had this festival on my bucket list for years. Any idea when the festival in 2015 will be? It’s so hard to plan 30 days before going on a trip. Let me know if you have any information! Thanks again for sharing your experience and beautiful pictures! 🙂

Sorry Amanda, like I said in the post, as far as I know there really is no way to know more than thirty days ahead of time! I know, it is a bummer how inconvenient it is for planning… but I think they want it that way 🙂

Hai there, loving all ur descriptions up there and totally wonderful images!!!
Planning to catch it this year! May i know the name of the ChiangMai expat group you mentioned about ? Is there a link that you could share? Trying to estimate the date for 2015 😀

Hey Siok, the reason I didn’t include the links to any specific groups is there are SO many and the popular ones change often. While I was planning, the group I was checking regularly was shut down by the person who ran it, and other one sprung up in its’ place. Just try searching “Chiang Mai expat” on Facebook and see what kind of groups pop up 🙂 Good luck!

I’m dying to go to this festival!! I’ve been researching a trip to Thailand for about a year now. If you do get any reliable tips as to the date please share!! I probably only have this one chance and I’ve got to see it!! Fingers crossed all who want to attend get to!! Loved your blog and all the pics!!

Wow. Wow! So glad I found your blog and thanks for all the tips. I wasn’t planning to stay in Asia through November, my birthday month, until I learned about this festival. I’m hoping to find some wonderful, open people who will join me on this journey. That said, will you be attempting this year’s festival? 🙂

I am heading to Chiang Mai and I’ve worked my travel dates in hope that I will catch the Yi Peng. Can you give me any advice on how to get the local details for the free event? That’s the experience I want. 🙂 Thank you!

Hi Meihoukai! Thank you for sharing these beautiful photos! I’m so glad I found your blog because I’ve been planning on a trip to Thailand this year to see this grand event! I also have been browsing online and it seems like Yee Peng falls on Nov 21-25th. And that the Nov 25th date is for the Tourist lantern festival and all tickets have since been sold out for that date. The tourism sites said there will be no local sky lantern festival on Nov 21st but I can’t believe that they will not have one at all. It may be kept quiet so less tourists people attend this year. Do you have any local s that can maybe confirm if there’s only one date for the sky lanterns?
Thanks!

Hey Quinn, unfortunately the friend I used to visit in Chiang Mai has moved away (and never attended the festival regardless, if you can believe it!) so all I have to recommend are the avenues I list in this post. One thing I can assure you is there will definitely be a local celebration regardless of what anyone says to try to convince tourists to buy tickets to the tourism one 🙂

Hi Meihoukai,
I had actually bough tickets and they refunded them because I didnt get them the passport number that day. Do you know if there are other spots to release lanterns??? I don’t think I will be able to find anymore. My husband and I planned our honeymoon around this and I am heartbroken we wont be able to see it in the paid event. Any advice would be great!
Thanks!

Thanks so much for sharing your experience! My boyfriend and I are making the trip to Thailand this year to see Yi Peng I just hope the dates come out soon so I can plan our trip a bit more. So excited for this adventure!

Meihoukai – thanks for sharing your experience. I was able to get a ticket to this year’s festival and cant wait. I wanted to get your thoughts about attending alone. Since I’ll be going to the festival alone, do you think my experience will be less gratifying and should I try to meet up with a group.

Hey Sylvia, congrats on heading to yi peng! I can imagine it would be a very moving experience alone but I suppose only you can gauge your own personality and whether or not you’d find that enjoyable. Best of luck deciding — I’m sure you’ll have a great time no matter what.

Loved your pics from Yi Peng! I’ve been there too and wrote about it on my travel blog, such an incredible experience. I’ve been researching for info on it this year and have been told that there is only going to be one release, Wed Nov 25 (the tourist event). Wondering if you’ve heard otherwise? Trying to help travelers who are asking and doing as much digging as possible!

Hey Justin, I haven’t really looked into it yet for 2015 but I find it absolutely impossible to believe that they’d cancel a traditional religious ceremony cherished by thousands of locals year after year and only do a release for foreign tourists. It’s one of Thailand’s highest holidays! So I have to believe that is just a rumor designed to funnel ticket sales 🙂

Oh my gosh, you are so lucky! Just looking at the photos on screen gave me goosebumps and my pulse racing. It must have been one of the most beautiful things to see in your lifetime. I wish to experience this one day. Thanks for sharing all the information 🙂

Hey Victoria! No, I won’t be attending this year sadly (planning to be home for Thanksgiving). I’m sure you could make this happen for you if it was a priority. Just read up as much as you can, and stay up to date on current news as I know things change often here. Lanterns are released all over the country for Yi Peng but this is really one of the most large scale, famous releases. I believe Sukkhothai also has a pretty major tourist-friendly one but that’s the extent of what I know. Good luck and let me know what you find!

Hey Meihoukai, I’ve been reading your blog for years & now I’m re-reading your Thailand posts because I’m off to the Land of Smiles in less than 2 weeks! Do you happen to know what day Yi Peng is this year? Or where I could find out? Or any insights into it being potentially cancelled due to the passing of the King? Thanks so much!

Hey Emily! Richard Barrow and Thaizer are both websites with lots of up-to-date info on what’s going on since the King’s passing in terms of holidays and events. I definitely recommend checking in with them — that’s what I’ve been doing! Best of luck with your trip and I wish you a magical lantern release 🙂

This year was very, very solemn and quiet on Koh Tao… I actually just posted an Instagram about it! I was told the celebrations were quite muted due to the proximity to the King’s funeral. I would be interested to hear what it was like in Bangkok! Were they releasing sky lanterns?

Just saw your Insta! Looks like you still had fun. It was pretty muted in Bangkok too. No sky lanterns, just the canal boats. I am happy that things are finally getting back to normal post-funeral! Next year I’ll have to make it to Chiang Mai for Yi Peng!

I'm a New York native who left my home to explore the world slowly and thoroughly. I’m just a little obsessed with photography, scuba diving, and reading guidebooks to countries I have no immediate plans to visit.